People V Dagani
People V Dagani
DECISION
AUSTRIA-MARTINEZ, J.:
For review before the Court is the Decision dated June 20, 20021 of the Court of
Appeals (CA) which affirmed the Decision of the Regional Trial Court of the City
of Manila, Branch 12 (RTC), dated February 18, 1993, in Criminal Case No. 89-
77467, finding the accused-appellants Otello Santiano y Leonida (Santiano) and
Rolando Dagani y Reyes (Dagani) guilty of the crime of Murder.
That on or about September 11, 1989, in the City of Manila, Philippines, the said
accused conspiring and confederating together and mutually helping each other did
then and there, willfully, unlawfully and feloniously, with intent to kill, evident
premeditation and treachery, attack, assault and use of personal violence upon one
ERNESTO JAVIER Y FELIX by then and there shooting him with a .38 caliber
revolver, thereby inflicting upon the said ERNESTO JAVIER Y FELIX mortal
gunshot wounds which were the direct and immediate cause of his death thereafter.
CONTRARY TO LAW.2
Upon arraignment, the appellants pleaded not guilty. Trial ensued where the
prosecution adduced evidence to establish the following:
Appellants testified that they were ordered by their desk officer to investigate a
commotion at the canteen. Upon reaching the place, Santiano ordered his co-
accused, Dagani, to enter, while the former waited outside.
Dagani approached Javier who had been striking a bottle of beer on the table.
Javier then pulled out a .22 caliber revolver and attempted to fire at Dagani, but the
gun failed to go off. Then suddenly, while outside the canteen, Santiano heard
gunfire and, from his vantage point, he saw Javier and Dagani grappling for a .22
caliber gun which belonged to Javier. During the course of the struggle, the gun
went off, forcing Santiano to fire a warning shot. He heard Javier’s gun fire again,
so he decided to rush into the canteen. Santiano then shot Javier from a distance of
less than four meters.
The RTC rendered its Decision, the dispositive portion of which reads:
Both accused are hereby ordered to indemnify the heirs of the victim the sum
of P50,000.00 as death indemnity, the sum of P31,845.00 as funeral and burial
expenses, the sum of
P30,000.00 as and for [sic] attorney’s fees and the further sum of P1,000.00 per
appearance of counsel.
Both accused shall be credited with the full extent of their preventive
imprisonment. Both accused are hereby committed to the Director, National
Penitentiary, Muntinlupa, Metro Manila for service of Sentence.
SO ORDERED.3
In brief, the RTC held that appellants failed to prove that Javier attempted to
squeeze the trigger of the .22 caliber gun when he pointed it at Dagani; that during
the course of the struggle for the possession of the .22 caliber gun, the danger to
the life of the accused ceased to be imminent; that in grappling for the weapon,
Dagani "controlled" the hands of Javier and pushed them away from his body; that
the appellants failed to produce the two empty shells as physical evidence of the
gunfire allegedly caused by Javier; that no points of entry or bullet markings on the
walls of the canteen were shown; that, in light of these findings, no unlawful
aggression was present on the part of the victim; that the appellants failed to prove
that they were on official duty at the time of the incidence; that, since it was not
established that Javier actually fired his gun, the injury inflicted upon him cannot
be regarded as a necessary consequence of the due performance of an official duty;
that the appellants were acting in conspiracy; that the qualifying circumstance of
treachery attended the killing, considering that Javier had been shot while his
hands were being held by Dagani and as his body was out of balance and about to
fall; and that the mitigating circumstance of voluntary surrender should be
appreciated in favor of the appellants.
II
III
IV
THE LOWER COURT GRAVELY ERRED IN FINDING THAT THE
PROSECUTION WAS ABLE TO ESTABLISH BEYOND REASONABLE
DOUBT THAT THE ACCUSED ARE GUILTY OF MURDER.4
Let the entire records of the case be elevated to the Supreme Court for the
mandated review.
SO ORDERED.5
The CA affirmed the findings of fact as well as the salient portions of the RTC
Decision, but deleted the award of attorney’s fees and the per appearance fees of
counsel since, the
CA reasoned, the instant case is criminal in nature which is under the control of the
public prosecutor, and, additionally, the RTC failed to justify this award in the
body of its Decision. And last, the CA found that the RTC erroneously applied the
Indeterminate Sentence Law since the penalty for Murder, at the time of the
incident, was reclusion perpetua which is an indivisible penalty to be imposed in
its entirety, regardless of the attending mitigating circumstance of voluntary
surrender.
Appellants are now before this Court submitting for resolution the same matters
argued before the CA. Through their Manifestation dated February 11,
2003,6 appellants prayed to dispense with the filing of additional briefs.
As of date, the records show that despite the efforts exerted by the surety and the
responsible law officers to locate the appellants, the latter could not be found and
have jumped bail.7
Appellants argue that the courts a quo misappreciated the facts and erred in finding
that there was no unlawful aggression on the part of the victim. They insist that the
victim, Javier, had been armed with a revolver at the time he was struggling with
appellant Dagani; that the former "could have easily killed the latter;" that, given
the fact that Javier had been drinking, "it is quite probable for Javier to act harshly
and aggressively towards
peace officers such as the accused;"8 and that Javier actually fired three shots from
his .22 caliber gun.9
When self-defense is invoked, the burden of evidence shifts to the accused to show
that the killing was legally justified. Having owned the killing of the victim, the
accused should be able to prove to the satisfaction of the Court the elements of
self-defense in order to avail of this extenuating circumstance. He must discharge
this burden by clear and convincing evidence. When successful, an otherwise
felonious deed would be excused, mainly predicated on the lack of criminal intent
of the accused. Self-defense requires that there be (1) an unlawful aggression by
the person injured or killed by the offender, (2) reasonable necessity of the means
employed to prevent or repel that unlawful aggression, and (3) lack of sufficient
provocation on the part of the person defending himself. All these conditions must
concur.10
unlawful and unprovoked attack that endangered the life of the accused, who was
then forced to inflict severe wounds upon the assailant by employing reasonable
means to resist the attack.13
In the instant case, the assertions that it was "quite probable" that Javier, during the
course of the struggle for the firearm, "could have easily killed" the appellants are
uncertain and speculative. There is aggression in contemplation of the law only
when the one attacked faces real and immediate threat to one’s life. The peril
sought to be avoided must be imminent and actual, not just speculative.14
The defense was unable to prove that there was unlawful aggression on the part of
Javier. They were unable to present evidence that the victim actually fired his gun.
No spent shells from the .22 caliber pistol were found and no bullets were
recovered from the scene of the incident. Javier also tested negative for gunpowder
residue. Moreover, the trial court found appellant Dagani’s account of the incident
to be incredible and self-serving. In sum, the defense presented a bare claim of
self-defense without any proof of the existence of its requisites.15
Even if it were established that Javier fired his gun as the appellants so insist, the
imminence of the danger to their lives had already ceased the moment Dagani held
down the victim and grappled for the gun with the latter. After the victim had been
thrown off-balance, there was no longer any unlawful aggression that would have
necessitated the act of killing.16 When an unlawful aggression that has begun no
longer exists, the one who resorts to self-defense has no right to kill or even to
wound the former aggressor.17 When Javier had been caught in the struggle for the
possession of the gun with appellant Dagani, the grave peril envisaged by appellant
Santiano, which impelled him to fire at the victim, had then ceased to a reasonable
extent,18 and undoubtedly, Santiano went beyond the call of self-preservation when
he proceeded to inflict the excessive and fatal injuries on Javier, even when the
alleged unlawful aggression had already ceased.19
The second element of self-defense demands that the means employed to neutralize
the unlawful aggression are reasonable and necessary. It is settled that reasonable
necessity of the means employed does not imply material commensurability
between the means of attack and defense. What the law requires is rational
equivalence.20 The circumstances in their entirety which surround the grappling of
the firearm by Dagani and Javier, such as the nature and number of gunshot
wounds sustained by the victim21 which amounted to two fatal wounds,22 that
Dagani was able to restrain the hands of Javier and push
them away from his body,23 that Dagani was larger than Javier and had finished
Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) hand-to-
hand combat training,24 and Javier, as admitted by the appellants, was inebriated at
the time of the incident,25 do not justify appellant Santiano’s act of fatally shooting
the victim twice.26
Appellants set up the defense that they were in the lawful performance of their
official duties. They specifically aver that they had been ordered by their desk
officer to proceed to the canteen in response to a telephone call stating that there
was a group "creating trouble;" that they were in the call of duty and exercising
their functions and responsibilities as members of the PNR Civil Security Office to
preserve peace and order and
protect the lives and property in the PNR Compound;29 and that, invoking
jurisprudence, as security officers in the performance of duty, like the police, they
must stand their ground and overcome the opponent, and the force that may be
exerted must differ from that which ordinarily may be offered in self-defense.30
Article 11 of the Revised Penal Code provides that a person who acts in the
fulfillment of a duty or in the lawful exercise of a right or office does not incur any
criminal liability. Two requisites must concur before this defense can prosper: 1)
the accused must have acted in the performance of a duty or in the lawful exercise
of a right or office; and 2) the injury caused or the offense committed should have
been the necessary consequence of such lawful exercise.31 These requisites are
absent in the instant case.
The defense failed to prove that the security officers were in fact on duty at the
time they were at the canteen. The trial court gave weight to the fact that the
appellants were unable to submit their daily time records to show that they were on
duty at the time. Appellants’ assertion that they were ordered to go on 24-hour duty
was belied by PNR Security Investigator Rolando Marinay’s testimony that PNR
security officers work in two 12-hour shifts, from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and from
7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.
Moreover, since it was not established that Javier fired his gun, the injury inflicted
upon him cannot be regarded as a necessary consequence of appellants’ due
performance of an official duty.32
As stated, considering that the imminent or actual danger to the life of the
appellants had been neutralized when Dagani grappled with Javier and restrained
his hands; that Javier had been thrown off-balance; that Dagani had been specially
trained for these purposes; and that Javier had been drinking immediately prior to
the scuffle, this Court holds that the fatal injuries that appellant Santiano inflicted
on the victim cannot be deemed to be necessary consequences of the performance
of his duty as a PNR security officer.33 While it is recognized that police officers –
if indeed the appellants can be likened to them – must stand their ground and
overwhelm their opponents, in People v. Ulep,34 this Court counseled:
The right to kill an offender is not absolute, and may be used only as a last resort,
and under circumstances indicating that the offender cannot otherwise be taken
without bloodshed. The law does not clothe police officers with authority to
arbitrarily judge the necessity to kill. It may be true that police officers sometimes
find themselves in a dilemma when pressured by a situation where an immediate
and decisive, but legal, action is needed. However, it must be stressed that the
judgment and discretion of police officers in the performance of their duties must
be exercised neither capriciously nor oppressively, but within reasonable limits. In
the absence of a clear and legal provision to the contrary, they must act in
conformity with the dictates of a sound discretion, and within the spirit and
purpose of the law. We cannot countenance trigger-happy law enforcement officers
who indiscriminately employ force and violence upon the persons they are
apprehending. They must always bear in mind that although they are dealing with
criminal elements against whom society must be protected, these criminals are also
human beings with human rights.35
But this Court cannot agree with the findings of the courts a quo that the appellants
were in conspiracy.
The Information cited conspiracy of the accused. Since it can also be committed
thru simultaneous/concerted action and considering that Javier was shot by
Santiano while being held by Dagani, under jurisprudence, conspiracy is present.36
Moreover, the facts show that Javier was shot by appellant Santiano as he was
being subdued by appellant Dagani. The trial court held that the manner of the
attack was indicative of a joint purpose and design by the appellants.37
Courts must judge the guilt or innocence of the accused based on facts and not on
mere conjectures, presumptions, or suspicions.38 Other than the plain fact that the
victim had been shot by one of the accused while being held by a co-accused, there
is no other evidence that the appellants were animated by the same purpose or were
moved by a previous common accord. It follows that the liability of the accused
must be determined on an individual basis. While no formal agreement is
necessary to establish conspiracy because conspiracy may be inferred from the
circumstances attending the commission of the crime, yet, conspiracy must be
established by clear and convincing evidence.39
This Court has held that even if all the malefactors joined in the killing, such
circumstance alone does not satisfy the requirement of conspiracy because the rule
is that
as clearly and convincingly as the commission of the offense itself.40 Thus, even
assuming that Javier was simultaneously attacked, this does not prove conspiracy.
No evidence was presented to show that the appellants planned to kill Javier or that
Dagani’s overt acts facilitated that alleged plan. The prosecution did not establish
that the act of Dagani in trying to wrestle the gun from Javier and in the process,
held the latter’s hands, was for the purpose of enabling Santiano to shoot at Javier.
The prosecution had the burden to show Dagani’s intentional participation to the
furtherance of a common design and purpose41 or that his action was all part of a
scheme to kill Javier. That Dagani did not expect Santiano to shoot the victim is
established when Santiano testified that Dagani "seem[ed] to be shocked, he was
standing and looking at the victim" as Javier gradually fell to the ground.42 And
since Dagani’s conviction can only be sustained if the crime had been carried out
through a conspiracy duly proven, in view of the failure of the prosecution to
discharge that burden, this Court is constrained to acquit him.
And this Court cannot say that treachery attended the attack. The RTC declared:
[T]he Court believes that Javier was shot while his body was out-balanced and
about to fall to the right side and while his hands were being held by Dagani.
Javier, therefore, was shot at when he has no means to defend himself, hence, the
killing was attended by the qualifying circumstance of treachery.43
The findings of the court a quo clearly showed that Javier was being held down
and could not effectively use his weapon. As such, the trial court held that Javier
could not be considered to be an armed man as he was being held down and was
virtually helpless.
It has been held that when an assault is made with a deadly weapon upon an
unarmed and unsuspecting victim who [was] given no immediate provocation for
the attack and under conditions which made it impossible for him to evade the
attack, flee or make [a] defense, the act is properly qualified as treachery, and the
homicide resulting therefrom is classified as murder.44 x x x
Treachery under par.16 of Article 14 of the Revised Penal Code is defined as the
deliberate employment of means, methods or forms in the execution of a crime
against persons which tend directly and specially to insure its execution, without
risk to the offender arising from the defense which the intended victim might raise.
Treachery is present when two conditions concur, namely: (1) that the means,
methods and forms of execution employed gave the person attacked no opportunity
to defend himself or to retaliate; and (2) that such means, methods and forms of
execution were deliberately and consciously adopted by the accused without
danger to his person.45
This Court has held that the suddenness of the attack, the infliction of the wound
from behind the victim, the vulnerable position of the victim at the time the attack
was made, or the fact that the victim was unarmed, do not by themselves render
the
The prosecution failed to convincingly prove that the assault by the appellants had
been deliberately adopted as a mode of attack intended to insure the killing of
Javier and without the latter having the opportunity to defend himself. Other than
the bare fact that Santiano shot Javier while the latter had been struggling with
Dagani over the possession of the .22 caliber gun, no other fact had been adduced
to show that the appellants consciously planned or predetermined the methods to
insure the commission of the crime, nor had the risk of the victim to
retaliate been eliminated during the course of the struggle over the weapon, as the
latter, though struggling, had not been
completely subdued. As already stated, this Court must emphasize that the mere
suddenness of the attack, or the vulnerable position of the victim at the time of the
attack, or yet even the fact that the victim was unarmed, do not by themselves
make the attack treacherous.51 It must be shown beyond reasonable doubt that the
means employed gave the victim no opportunity to defend himself or retaliate, and
that such means had been deliberately or consciously adopted without danger to
the life of the accused.52
For these reasons, the Court is inclined to look upon the helpless position of Javier
as merely incidental to the attack, and that the decision to shoot Javier was made in
an instant.53
Considering the rule that treachery cannot be inferred but must be proved as fully
and convincingly as the crime itself, any doubt as to its existence must be resolved
in favor of Santiano. Accordingly, for failure of the prosecution to prove treachery
to qualify the killing to Murder, appellant Santiano may only be convicted of
Homicide.54 The penalty, therefore, under Article 249 of the Revised Penal Code,
as amended, is reclusion temporal.
The Office of the Solicitor General is correct in that the courts a quo failed to
consider the aggravating circumstance of
taking advantage of official position under Article 14 (1) of the Revised Penal
Code, since the accused, a PNR security officer
covered by the Civil Service, committed the crime with the aid of a gun he had
been authorized to carry as such.55Considering that the mitigating circumstance of
voluntary surrender, as duly appreciated by the courts a quo, shall be offset against
the aggravating circumstance of taking advantage of official position, the penalty
should be imposed in its medium period, pursuant to Article 64 (4) of the aforesaid
Code.
Applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law, the sentence of appellant Santiano will
consist of a minimum that is anywhere within the full range of prision mayor, and
a maximum which is anywhere within reclusion temporal in its medium period.
This Court hereby fixes it to be from eight (8) years and one (1) day of prision
mayor as minimum, to fourteen (14) years, eight (8) months, and one (1) day of
reclusion temporal, as maximum.
The CA erred in deleting the attorney’s fees and per appearance fees for lack of
factual basis. Although the CA is correct in noting that the RTC failed to justify
these awards in the body of its Decision, this appeal opens the entire case for
review and, accordingly, the records show that the foregoing
amounts had been stipulated by the parties,57 thereby dispensing with the need to
prove the same.58
As to moral damages, however, the widow of the victim, Erlinda Javier, is not
entitled to the same. She did not testify on any mental anguish or emotional
distress which she suffered as a result of her husband’s death. No other heirs of
Javier testified in the same manner.59
per appearance of counsel. Appellant Santiano shall be credited with the full extent
of his preventive imprisonment.
Appellant Rolando Dagani y Reyes is hereby ACQUITTED.
SO ORDERED.